Alaethes Wealth LLC Lowers Stock Position in McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD)

Alaethes Wealth LLC reduced its position in McDonald’s Co. (NYSE:MCD) by 5.1% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,031 shares of the fast-food giant’s stock after selling 55 shares during the quarter. Alaethes Wealth LLC’s holdings in McDonald’s were worth $263,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Dixon Mitchell Investment Counsel Inc. purchased a new position in McDonald’s in the first quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Clear Investment Research LLC purchased a new stake in shares of McDonald’s during the 4th quarter valued at about $38,000. Kings Path Partners LLC acquired a new position in McDonald’s during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $38,000. Accent Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in McDonald’s in the 4th quarter worth approximately $44,000. Finally, Transcendent Capital Group LLC acquired a new stake in McDonald’s in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $45,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.29% of the company’s stock.

McDonald’s Trading Up 1.0 %

Shares of NYSE MCD opened at $296.77 on Friday. McDonald’s Co. has a 12-month low of $243.53 and a 12-month high of $302.39. The company has a market cap of $213.88 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.19, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.88 and a beta of 0.72. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $277.30 and its 200 day simple moving average is $270.88.

McDonald’s (NYSE:MCD) last posted its earnings results on Monday, July 29th. The fast-food giant reported $2.97 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.07 by ($0.10). McDonald’s had a net margin of 32.25% and a negative return on equity of 178.68%. The company had revenue of $6.49 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.62 billion. The business’s quarterly revenue was down .1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $3.17 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts forecast that McDonald’s Co. will post 11.67 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

McDonald’s Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 17th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 3rd were paid a dividend of $1.67 per share. This represents a $6.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.25%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, September 3rd. McDonald’s’s payout ratio is 56.71%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on MCD. Tigress Financial upped their target price on shares of McDonald’s from $355.00 to $360.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 3rd. Wedbush reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $295.00 price objective on shares of McDonald’s in a research report on Monday, July 29th. Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on McDonald’s from $312.00 to $300.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, July 11th. KeyCorp reduced their price target on McDonald’s from $310.00 to $305.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, July 30th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft dropped their price objective on McDonald’s from $295.00 to $290.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, July 30th. Eleven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nineteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $306.11.

Insider Buying and Selling at McDonald’s

In other McDonald’s news, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 1,098 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $288.70, for a total value of $316,992.60. Following the sale, the insider now owns 12,583 shares in the company, valued at $3,632,712.10. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, EVP Marion K. Gross sold 1,498 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $286.36, for a total value of $428,967.28. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 1,560 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $446,721.60. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Joseph M. Erlinger sold 1,098 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $288.70, for a total transaction of $316,992.60. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 12,583 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,632,712.10. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 5,193 shares of company stock valued at $1,403,593 in the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.23% of the company’s stock.

McDonald’s Profile

McDonald's Corporation operates and franchises restaurants under the McDonald's brand in the United States and internationally. It offers food and beverages, including hamburgers and cheeseburgers, various chicken sandwiches, fries, shakes, desserts, sundaes, cookies, pies, soft drinks, coffee, and other beverages; and full or limited breakfast, as well as sells various other products during limited-time promotions.